Silver Feathers
by BlackDragonDiva
Summary: Sasuke comes home after four years away from Kohona. He struggles to return to his former position on Kohona, but its clearly not as easy as it seems. To make things worse,he doesn't return alone and everyone's pointing fingers. There’s something wrong wi
1. Waiting

Silver Feathers

By: Black Dragon Diva

Rating: PG-13

Anime: Naruto

Spoilers: Up to Episode 144

Disclaimer: I don't own the Naruto Characters

Summary: Sasuke comes home after four years away from Kohona. But he's not alone. There's something wrong with the young man he brings with him, and its not just because he can't remember who he is. Is he an Orochimaru spy or a far greater threat?

Chapter One: Waiting

Naruto was waiting quietly, which was a sure sign that something was wrong. The normally fidgety, exuberant boy turning quiet and… Sasuke-like, would cause anyone to look about in alarm. Maybe the world was ending? The sky was still blue, and it didn't seem to be falling, although it had long since been drained by the lack of sunlight into a deeper, calmer blue. Of course, nobody in Kohona village would think 'Sasuke-like' without looking away in remorse, clenching a fist in anger, or sighing in pity. It had been almost four years since Sasuke had left the village, and none of the inhabitants was unaffected by it in one way or another. After all, he had been a promising young ninja at the time, a 'genius' by the standards of many, and a comrade to most. Or so they had thought.

Naruto had been different. He hadn't given up on Sasuke like many had. Some just didn't care one way or the other, noticing only the great loss of power with no Sharingan heir in the village. He knew the village had lost more than that. And he had lost more than that. So much more. He'd lost a friend. One of the only ones he had.

Orochimaru was gone now, and with his absence Sasuke no longer had a reason to stay away from home. His _home_, if he still decided it was good enough for him. Naruto had kept his promise to Sakura to bring their friend back home, or at least he was still trying. If this plan didn't work, he'd have to use much more forceful measures.

Of course, looking at him now, merely staring at the sky with a calm, mild expression, he didn't seem to be doing anything at all. Then again, guard duty didn't have many perks other than a great time to lose some sleep and think about things. However, Naruto was well past the planning stage of his plan. He was enacting it. He wasn't standing idly, he was waiting.

For Sasuke.

To come _home_.

Going to see the other male member of Team 7 hadn't been difficult for him, but Naruto knew it was hard for Sasuke to see him again as well, to struggle with his own defeat. Itachi was dead. But not by Uchiha hands. By Orochimaru. To make his container-to-be stronger. It killed Sasuke. Something in him died, and not just the Avenger in him. Underneath all that was hurt and loss. For his brother. Because of this something happened to his Sharingan, just as Itachi had predicted it would should he see the death of someone close to him. It evolved into the MangeSharingan.

As much as Sasuke had fantasized over obtaining the Mange Sharingan (although continuing to refuse killing Naruto to obtain it), Sasuke now had it with nothing to show for its glory other than haunting images of his dying brother.

Finding Sasuke hadn't been hard for Naruto. All it took was a dull sense of tracking to find unsteady footsteps and small splashes of vomit. There was blood too. His brother's blood. His own blood. Naruto's blood.

Finding him huddled, defeated, against a tall strong oak, as though trying to steal away its strength by pressing himself against it, did not please Naruto. Neither did the shaking in the other young man's limbs. Limbs that had grown strong thanks to the training of his brother's butcher.

Naruto had given him one month. A solid, comforting amount of time to get one's thoughts in order, one's feelings back to the confines of his mind so they would not explode upon looking at something that made them rage.

Sasuke hadn't answered him when Naruto told him he would be waiting, that all of Hidden Leaf was waiting for him. At _home_.

And that was exactly what Naruto was doing. It was a month to the day. In a couple of hours, he would be late, but Naruto didn't want to think of that. He didn't want to think that he might be late for a long time. Or maybe he was just turning into Kakashi-sensei.

Naruto had to smile at that. That would be the day.

There was something that caught his attention in the distance. Well, it caught Kyuubi's attention more than his. He had learned that the kitsune had exceptionally good hearing and sense of smell, which was sometimes lent to Naruto when it was feeling helpful. Or threatened. Naruto supposed this time it was just trying to be of assistance. Probably annoyed that nothing was happening; everything was mundane day after day. Naruto's energy levels skyrocketed higher than they even used to be as a graduate fresh from the academy. He had to keep himself amused for two, and it wasn't as easy as it looked. He also ate for two. His stops to the ramen shop grew in frequency, and the bowls consumed had doubled. It was no wonder why he was always broke. Iruka-sensei was always nice enough to invite him into the house should the youth come to scrounge a dinner. It was hardly a wonder why he took small, low-rank missions anymore coupled with the ones given to him by the Hokage. The kid had an appetite that rivaled Chouji's.

Kyuubi didn't feel very happy about the thing in the distance. Naruto could practically hear him growling. Over the years they had formed a bond, sensing each other's souls and emotions. And right now, Naruto had the distinct feeling that Kyuubi was Not Happy.

Naruto might have taken the time to ask why, but he didn't. Have the time, that is. Whatever it was, it was approaching; slowly, but still approaching. Not to mention that without a near-death experience, it took for-rickin'-ever to find the Fox. His container was full of dead-ends and labyrinth-like corridors. Needless to say, the Fourth had done his jobannoyingly well.

Something in the air made Naruto twitch his nose. A scent. Familiar, but not entirely earthy. A shinobi-like scent.

Having a non-suspicious, earthy scent was important to a ninja, who's life depended on blending in with the surroundings. It was, not surprisingly, unique to each country. Being this was an earthy scent, it was either a Kohona shinobi, or someone who had been living in the woods for one hell of a long time.

Sasuke fit both criteria, but Naruto was reluctant to hope. It was the very reason why he had told no one about what was happening. Or what might be happening. Hopefully. Maybe.

Sakura-chan was the main reason why. Should she find out and be disappointed Naruto would hardly be able to forgive himself. He was ashamed that it had taken so long for him to get anywhere in bringing Sasuke back and had made a point to try to avoid the topic at all costs.

Tsunade-sama was the only one, in fact, to whom he had hinted anything about Sasuke's return. And that was merely to keep ANBU away. He wouldn't stand for the elite ninja's to complete the mission he had started years ago.

The rustle was closer now. Naruto pulled a kunai from his pouch; just to be safe. He was both glad and not so much so that he had yet to figure out how to convinced Kyuubi to lend him eyes that could see in the dark. On one hand he'd see the intruder, but on the other, the suspense was thrilling. Nothing like adrenaline to get the blood pumping.

A snap in the brush made Naruto raise his weapon slightly. Whatever it was, animal or human, it wasn't hiding its advancement. An advancement straight toward him.

Naruto swallowed his hope forcefully. Even if Sasuke did come, who said he would come to this part of the wall? The thought was stomped out. He would. Naruto was the only one he would trust to show his face to right now and the Sharingan would help him find the blonde. Not to mention the fact that Naruto had specifically chosen this part of the wall because it faced the direction he assumed Sasuke would come from. He had taken it for over a week. In the process he had probably raised some suspicion, but he couldn't bring himself to care. People still didn't like him; not entirely. But their respect for him grew and continued to grow. At least most of the restaurant owners were fond of him. Or maybe his large appetite.

A deer leapt from behind the thick undergrowth. Upon seeing Naruto and his bright orange and black clothing, it veered swiftly off to the boy's left, upturning grass and clumps of dirt. It loped gracefully alongside the wall before jumping back into the forest, flashing a startled white tail back toward the way from which it had come.

"Naruto."

……………………..

A/N: okay, short chapter first. My first Naruto fic. The real stuff starts next chapter. There are some heavy spoilers if you haven't seen up to the naru/sasu fight at the Valley of the End. Sorry!

Itachi has the Mange Sharingan. He obtained it after killing the cousin he saw as a brother. It has special techniques that are rare even for the Uchiha clan.


	2. The Returning

Silver Feathers

By: Black Dragon Diva

__

Rating: PG-13

__

Anime: Naruto

__

Spoilers: Up to Episode 144

__

Disclaimer: I don't own the Naruto Characters

__

Summary: Sasuke comes home after four years away from Kohona. But he's not alone. There's something wrong with the young man he finds outside the borders of the hidden Sound village, and its not just because he can't remember who he is. Is he an Orochimaru spy or a far greater threat?

Chapter Two: The Returning

"Naruto."

Said boy's head whipped around so quickly something was pinched. He winced only slightly, opting instead for staring. His heart stopped.

Dead silence.

Ba-dump.

His heart leapt back into consciousness.

"You look like shit, Sasuke-bastard," Naruto murmured.

A wheel in his head creaked, then moved forward slowly.

Gods! It was _Sasuke_! Here! At Kohona's wall! He was hunched over, his hair dirty and his clothes dirtier, frayed and battle-eaten long past repair. But Gods, it was _him_! It was _Sasuke_!

"You were never a looker yourself, dobe," was the irritated mutter. There was a glare in the darkness from under the trees that Naruto sensed more than saw. The trees grew huddled shadows over Sasuke, shouldering away the cool, pressing light of the full moon.

Naruto smiled and turned, stepping closer to the black-clad teen before him. He hadn't taken more than three steps when he stopped, his smile diminishing.

Sasuke stepped back, further into the protective shadows. He opened his mouth to speak but, as usual, Naruto's tongue was quicker.

"Who the hell is that!" he all but yelped, pointing accusingly to Sasuke's back.

Sasuke shifted the weight on his shoulders and back. However, the said weight wasn't a back pack as Naruto had originally thought. A head of blackish hair rested against Sasuke's shoulder, shot through with dark silver and tiny threads of midnight blue. The face was pressed against Sasuke's shoulder and thus Naruto saw no features on the unconscious face. However, the shortness of the hair and the lean build that was common for their age suggested intense bishonen masculinity.

"He can't come out into the moonlight or his Chakra goes berserk," Sasuke explained calmly. Naruto sputtered and Sasuke plowed on. "I found him a few miles out of Sound. He has burns all over his skin and tons of wounds from weapons."

Naruto finally caught his tongue up with his brain. It just took a moment.

"You found him near _Sound_? Are you out of your fucking mind! For all we know he could be Orochimaru's new container! We don't even know if the fucker's truly dead and you bring some guy with you that could be in alliance with him! What the hell are you think-" Naruto's outraged voice grew in pitch and Sasuke bit back the urge to yell right back at him.

"Shut up!" he hissed. "Someone might hear you."

"Does it matter?" Naruto asked, his voice irritated, but his question genuine. Sasuke ignored him.

"Let's just get him somewhere safe," Sasuke said, eyes darting about. Moonlight was everywhere.

"Here, let me take him. You're tired."

Sasuke allowed Naruto to take the young man from his shoulders, silently grateful as he straightened and cracked his back. Although probably no older than Naruto and himself, he was still close to one hundred sixty pounds of limp flesh. Traveling with that on your back for a few days got a bit uncomfortable.

"Hold on a minute. I have to leave someone here at the post," Naruto said. He shifted his shoulders and hunched over to balance the unconscious body on his back. He quickly formed a few hand seals and muttered. Two poofs of smoke cleared to reveal two Naruto Dopplegangers.

"You two stay here. If anything happens one of you run and get another guard while the other stays here to buy time," the original Naruto, distinguishable only because of the weight on his hunched back, gave the instructions firmly. The other two nodded and took their placed on the wall.

Sasuke waited quietly, ears and eyes alert. If they waited a few moments the moon would go behind the clouds and it would be safe to move forward. The wispy cloud, however, didn't give them much time. He turned to Naruto, who was watching him.

"What?" he muttered. Naruto just smiled.

"Nothin'," was the smug reply. Sasuke grunted quietly and looked up. The moon was beginning to become obscured even as he watched.

"C'mon. Let's go." And with that they leapt up, landing on the three-foot wide ledge at the top of the wall. Sasuke took a moment to look about the sleepy village. Few lights were shining, mostly in the taverns and bars, and laughter trickled softly from open doors and windows. He took a deep breath. The scent was still the same, rich and earthy with tinges of smoke and cooking food.

"Kitsuii!"

At the sound of Naruto's voice, Sasuke looked down to where the blonde had already landed. Next to him was a giant… slug. That was odd. He studied the blue patterns on the white invertebrate carefully before hopping down from the wall as well. His Sharingan, although exhausted, told him it was a summoned creature.

"What are you doing here, Kitsuii?" Naruto asked excitedly. The slug, a smaller version of the large, towering creature Tsunade had summoned in her battle with Orochimaru, waved its eyes slightly.

"Tsunade-sama told me to come and see if you needed any help," Kitsuii replied. Naruto smiled.

"So she remembered," he said quietly. "Awesome. Hey, Kitsuii, you think you can carry this guy to the hospital? We'll follow you."

Kitsuii moved in a gesture that could be assumed was a nod. Naruto quickly put the boy on her back. In the dim light he could see unruly hair falling over his eyes, a long lock tied with red ribbon covering each ear. His face was bruised and cut. All in all, Sasuke looked like he had just woken up from a refreshing beauty sleep in comparison.

"He's pretty fucked up," Naruto commented to no one.

"We need to hurry. The moon's starting to come out," Sasuke said. He turned to Kitsuii and she started off at a pace he curiously didn't suspect she was capable of. He and Naruto took to the rooftops and building overhangs to keep up.

"Hey Sasuke." Naruto's voice was soft as they ran side-by-side. The teen grunted in question.

"You're here to stay right? You're not leaving Kohona again, are you?"

The air was thick and the silence stretched. Naruto could feel his stomach twisting slightly with hope and fear. Gods… Please!

"No, I'm not leaving," was Sasuke's quiet reply. "I'm going to wait for Orochimaru to come back, if he's still alive. Then I'm going to kill him. Until then, I'm going to stay home."

Naruto's heart leapt. _Home_. He gave his teammate a radiant smile.

"Yeah. Good."

The hospital was one place that always had lights on. Be it for patients who couldn't sleep or late-night drunks coming in, seeking shelter against angry spouses and/or family, or who were merely too drunk to reach home. Helping drunks home, Naruto had learned, got him a nice tip that could buy a small bowl of ramen at Ichiraku. But there was only the dust in the streets at the moment.

Upon reaching Kohona hospital Sasuke and Naruto followed Kitsuii to the back entrance. Tsunade stood waiting, half asleep against the closed door.

"Baa-san!" Naruto called to her as he jumped down. She jolted awake and stood, crossing her arms lazily as she blinked the sleep from her eyes. Naruto grinned.

"You fell asleep," he teased. She snorted and glared at him, but her eyes darted around quickly.

"No, I was resting my eyes," she replied. Her eyes darted over to Kitsuii and her eyebrows raised.

"Who's this?" she asked as Kitsuii inched closer. She knelt down, scanning the boy's face. It was then that the cloud, having been very helpful to Sasuke and Naruto thus far, left the moon to wander elsewhere in the sky. Silver light flooded down over his sleeping face, which quickly contorted, radiant and writhing in the light. A flash of blinding silver light screamed into Tsunade and Naruto's eyes, making them squeeze them shut in pain.

"What the Hell!" the Hokage hissed.

With a quick flash of shadow, the unconscious boy soon stood inside the doorway, Sasuke under his arm with another around the other boy's waist to keep him upright. His face again fell slack, his head hanging limply. Sasuke turned and glared at Naruto, who blinked away the silver spots before his eyes.

"I told you not to let him in the moonlight," he muttered. He was glad for the distraction without the uncomfortable greetings from the Hokage, who was currently stumbling to her feet. She muttered a few choice curses as she made her way into the back entrance to the hospital.

"Gods, what _was_ that?" Naruto asked. He was currently leaning on Kitsuii as she uncurled herself from a defensive position.

"Chakra?" Tsunade asked quietly. Sasuke nodded.

"It's the moonlight. It looks like a berserker reflex," the teen replied. The woman's mouth spread to a thin, worried line as she studied the youth in the dim light of the small room they were in.

"I'll get a nurse!" Naruto said, his eyes fully recovered as he rushed past. Tsunade reached out and grabbed the back of his shirt nonchalantly, still studying the injured boy that Sasuke was currently settling into a chair.

"Lemme go, Baa-san!" he whined, pulling forward. When she didn't, he continued to complain. "Ano, Baa-san! This is a new outfit! You'll ruin it! C'mon, lemme go!"

Sasuke turned and saw that, indeed, Naruto was dressed differently, no longer in that gaudy orange jacket and baggy pants. Instead there was a tight orange tee-shirt, still gaudy, but covered with a loose black vest. On its back was the swirling red symbol formerly found on his orange jacket. His orange shirt had a black Kohona Leaf symbol on its front. His pants weren't as baggy and seemed to fit a bit better than the others, that always had looked as though they clung to him through sheer belt-power. These weren't orange either, but rather black. Sharinken holder was carefully wrapped around his right leg. Of course, his footing was still the same traditional sandal shinobi wore, and could be seen as his pants ended just past his knees. All in all, it was a somewhat mild get-up for the hyper-active ninja. Sasuke no longer felt blinded by the mere sight of him.

He couldn't remember if he'd been wearing the same outfit a month ago…

"Quiet, Naruto," Hokage-sama ordered. The blonde quickly fell silent, watching her carefully. "I think we should wait for other's to see Sasuke and our guest until later."

Naruto, his plan extinguished momentarily, stood sulkily with crossed arms.

"Is… Sakura here?" Sasuke asked quietly. Both looked at him and blinked. He studied the tile floor.

"She is at home right now. She'll be back in the morning," Tsunade said softly. Sasuke grunted and turned away.

Sakura sneezed. She rubbed her nosed tiredly, but continued to decipher the page before her.

It was late, but the time of night never stopped her from studying. She was, for once, struggling with a certain medical procedure. It was very advanced, but that, like the time, never stopped her. She refused to give up. She was going to show Sasuke how strong she was when he came home.

Her mental focus wavered over the characters on the page. Her hands, once poised for a justu, fell slack. Home. When would Sasuke come home?

She looked up from the thick book in front of her. She shifted slightly in her chair so she could look out the open window beside her desk. Moonlight shown upon her windowsill, but stretched no further. Sour yellow light from her desk lamp burned it all away.

A thick, milky moon looked down on her softly from its place a thumb's length from the horizon. She stared at it longingly, and at the horizon it was slowly discarding. Kami-sama what she would give to be out of this room. To be with her team again. To see Sasuke again. Hell, to see _Naruto_ again. The annoying guy was too busy picking up missions and training to do more than stop by once a week to say hi. And that's _all_ he did. No date requests, no irritating comments that made her lose her temper. She sighed. Either he's grown up or he was avoiding her. Or maybe a little of both, she mused.

She turned back to the book. She couldn't keep studying like this tonight or she'd be dead on her feet in the morning. Tsunade-sama wouldn't appreciate it and she would probably be punished by having to do the laundry or something just as boring and non-medical. She stood up, stretching tired, creaking limbs. She shook off a few cookie crumbs that stuck to the front of her pajama's; the remnants of her late-night snack. She put a hand to the back of her head, ruffling her hair. It needed to be cut, but she was far too busy to be going to the hair salon. Instead, she pulled it over her shoulder, quickly twisting it into a loose braid and tied it off. It was a short braid, as she refused to let her hair grow as long as it used to be, but it served to get the thick strands out of her face. She turned off her light and made her way across the room.

She yawned as she pulled thin, summer covers back from her bed. She climbed in silently, being sure to avoid any unintentional noise that might wake someone in the household. They were proud of their daughter, of course, but hardly approved of her late-night study sessions.

Snuggling deep into the blankets she found comfort in their warmth. She sneezed again and muttered before turning over to sleep.

Neji looked up, frozen in mid-kick. He blinked, but the Byakugan, he knew, never lied. However, when his eyes flickered open again, the outrageous Chakra was gone. He relaxed his poised foot and dropped his hands to his side. He concentrated his Byakugan harder, but saw…

He stopped. He blinked a second time in bewilderment. Impossible.

He sighed and relaxed, disengaging Byakugan and closing his eyes. Perhaps he had strained it with the training. After all, using it all day, strengthening his Chakra and his justu all at once, might have adverse effects on it. Like, hallucinations? He'd have to ask his uncle about it.

Then again, he could always go see for himself.

He opened his eyes, staring into the dark sky and the twinkling stars. He immediately saw and named constellations and land-mark stars in his head. Basic survival training 101. Shinobi grade-school things. To the normal eye they might be bright, but for the Hyuuga's normal eye, they seemed duller, lacking the glorious luster that awed him by sheer beauty with the Byakugan.

He turned away from the sky, flicking a stay lock of dark hair over his shoulder. He must have lost his tie while training. He was tempted to look about for it, but his curiosity for the strange Chakra in the distance was stronger.

He glanced into the house, but already knew everyone was asleep. By the gods it was late. Had he really been training all day? It wouldn't be a wonder if his Byakugan was acting strangely after a 15 hour strain. But because of training like this, day after day, it had grown stronger and his justu's more numerous and powerful.

He was tired to.

Who was he kidding? Why was he trying to avoid inspecting the Chakra?

He muttered the truth to himself irritably, but decided not to listen.

Fine, he'd check it out then.

Such a huge Chakra. Why hadn't anyone awoken? Why couldn't he _feel_ it? He didn't like the thought of why.

Instead of dwelling, he resummoned his Byakugan, which was reluctant to reengage. His eyes fell upon… the hospital? Without further thought, he sprinted forward.

Naruto studied Sasuke for a moment before Tsunade interrupted his thoughts.

"Naruto, Sasuke, follow me. We'll get you two patched up and you can rest," the Hokage said. Both watched her as she studied the injured boy in the chair before carefully, yet effortlessly, pulling him up out of the chair and into her arms. Carrying the boy and confident the other two would follow, she led them through a door and down a corridor. She told them to wait at the foot of a set of stairs going up to the second level as she went to the front desk. A nurse there jumped to her feet upon seeing the Hokage and quickly offered her assistance after seeing the young man in her arms. Naruto and Sasuke could see her shake her head and decline the offer. The nurse took her seat once more and Tsunade turned away.

She took the stairs quickly, but gracefully, hardly jarring the package in her arms. Upon reaching the second floor she quickly walked down the hall, her heels clicking on the shining floor that shimmered yellow in the ugly overhead lights.

Tsunade quickly slid open a door on their left that was fit with two separate beds, a curtain between them for privacy. She walked into the room, placing the boy in her arms on the bed to her right before gesturing to Sasuke and Naruto to take the other bed on the other side of the curtain by the open window.

"Sasuke, get in the shower. Naruto will help you bandage your wounds. If any of them are serious I'll look at them." She glared at them. "And don't pass them off. I'll pound you both if I find out you ignored a wound that might need my attention." She turned back to her patient. He was covered in dried, dirty blood, but breathing easily. She removed his sandals, then started to unzip the dark blue (or she assumed the color was blue), wide-collared shirt. She pulled it from the boy's shoulders, to which was a pack that was as torn and bloody as its owner.

"Sasuke, what's in his pack?" Tsunade asked. She heard him removing his shirt slowly, his teeth grinding as the fabric once pasted to his skin and wounds with dried blood was painfully pulled free.

"A set of clothes. Feathers," was the reply.

"Feathers?" she asked, her voice surprised, but not effecting her deft hands and fingers.

"Yeah."

She heard him mutter to Naruto about being able to take care of the rest and headed to the bathroom near the door. It shut a moment later and the water started.

"Naruto, grab the disinfectant, will you?"

"Sure." There was scrambling on the other side of the curtain, then it was pushed aside.

"Hot damn, he's worse off than I thought," Naruto breathed, staring at the chest wounds in gaping awe. Tsunade grabbed the bottle from him.

"Make sure the curtain is pulled tight. I really don't feel like getting blinded again, and the windows are open," the Hokage muttered. Naruto stepped forward, swallowing thickly. Half of the boy was burned, but not directly, so the skin was marred, but not in a threatening way that couldn't be completely healed. It was the kunai and other weapon wounds that were hideous. They ripped over his body in shriveled, dark mouths poised in a cry of anguish. Many would need intense healing from Tsunade.

She was wiping the wounds clean when Naruto spoke. His words didn't surprise her, but his sad, soft tone did.

"Ano sa, Baa-san, how do you think the village will react to Sasuke? Will they treat him like they used to treat me? Like he's some kind of monster?" he murmured.

"I don't know, Naruto," she said softly.

"I bet Sakura-chan will be happy," he said, his voice forcefully lightening. Tsunade ached a tiny bit. She knew how much Naruto had sacrificed to bring Sasuke back. Of course, she knew he hadn't done it all for Sakura, but it would still hurt when the girl went straight to the black-haired boy to hug and fawn over him before she even turned to thank Naruto, if she did at all. It was the one-track mind of the girl. She could practically see it now, with Naruto smiling in the background, proud, but left out.

She grunted her acknowledgement of his statement as her hand reached out for a waiting round of gauze on a steel cart by the bed, left there specifically for her. She rubbed away the liquefying blood carefully, but the boy with the silver-black hair didn't even flinch. She was aghast. There was so much _blood_. She flinched. Why wasn't he dead yet?

Footsteps from down the hall drew her attention. There was excited, but quiet jabbering as quicker footsteps followed the sure, heavy ones. There was no reply to the nurse, who seemed to be trying to explain that visitation hours were over.

"Naruto, get the door, will you?" Tsunade asked. The boy nodded, leaving her to work in peace. The door opened.

"Neji, what are you doing here?" Naruto's surprised voice was echoed in Tsunade's mind. Didn't these kids sleep? They had missions in the morning.

"Sasuke's here?" Neji's voice was just as surprised as Naruto's under its deep impassiveness.

"Well… erm.. I mean…"

"Yes, Neji. He's in the shower," Tsunade said. She sighed. She supposed it wouldn't be so easy keeping Sasuke a secret until he had recovered like she'd planned. She heard footsteps approach and the curtain push away.

"Oi, Neji, careful, keep those closed! Hey, you shouldn't go in there!" Neji heartily ignored Naruto's protests and came to stand at the foot of the bed, watching Tsunade press her hands over an especially nasty wound on the boy's chest. The pale green light weaved intricately over said wound and it gradually healed shut. Neji's eyes scanned over the mangled flesh. It was going to take the Hokage forever to heal all of them like that.

Although exhausted, Neji still had enough energy to reactivate the Byakugan once more. What he saw was startling.

A short gasp from Neji drew the attention of the other two, who looked at him in curiosity.

"What's wrong, Ne-" Naruto was interrupted by the bathroom door opening. They all looked up to see a half-dripping Sasuke in the doorway, towel firmly tied around his waist. One hand was against the doorframe, supporting his grimacing form, while the other had his clothes clenched in it. The wounds on his chest, though small, were bleeding again after the water's irritation and a scrubbing. Naruto was the first to notice Sasuke's slight tremble as he leaned heavily against the door.

Tsunade muttered about the curtain having been left half open before returning to her administrations.

"There are hospital gowns in the dresser," she said. Naruto quickly took away Sasuke's blood-soaked clothing and offered him a shoulder to lean on over to the bed. It was clear the Uchiha's exhaustion was quickly catching up with him. Without thinking much about it, he took Naruto's shoulder, hardly offering a glance at Neji as his blistered feet met with cool flooring. His footsteps left tiny dabs of blood on the sparkling linoleum.

After placing Sasuke on the bed, where he sat with his head down and his hands on his knees, Naruto threw the clothes next to the dresserthat housed the blue-gray hospital clothing. Taking out a set that looked frighteningly like _normal **pajamas**_ he shut the doors. He threw them on the bed next to his injured charge and fetched the antiseptic and clean bandages.

Neji watched all of this carefully with expressionless, colorless eyes. However, he found no hostility from the Uchiha. It was as if the past three and a half years never happened, as though the two had just come back from an especially strenuous mission that had come down the hardest on Sasuke. Both were silent, speaking without words, but mere body language. Neji's eyes narrowed slightly. Somewhere among all the pain and confusion, these two had connected; become friends.

"Neji-kun, could you tell me how this low boy's Chakra supply is?" Tsunade-sama jolted the Hyuuga from his musings and he turned to her, walking back into the small cubical. He straightened his back and pulled his hands behind his back respectfully.

"Of course, Hokage-sama. By activating the Byakugan I found that he has barely any at all." Tsunade nodded. That was expected considering his condition. "However, I did notice something strange. His Chakra channels are… they're not channels at all, they're threads. Even at full strength he wouldn't have enough Chakra to climb a tree."

Tsunade didn't seem fazed by his words.

"So he has no shinobi talents?" she asked. Neji hesitated.

"I don't know."

Sasuke grunted. "Of course he does. You saw the amount of Chakra that exploded from him when the moonlight hit him." There was a muffled curse and a 'watch it' from the Uchiha, followed by a quiet apology from Naruto. Bandages were shuffled and scissors snipped.

Neji turned to Tsunade, eyes wide.

"That was _him_?" he asked skeptically. Kami, this boy could barely breathe, much less emit such huge amounts of power! But it was confirmed when Tsunade-sama nodded her head.

"Neji, please go downstairs and ask the nurse for a 'Do not Disturb' sign please. The last thing we need is an unsuspecting nurse walking in and announcing the people in this room to the village without our knowing," the Hokage said. Neji took saw the implication. He wasn't to speak and no one was to know about this until further notice. Reading between the lines, he took it as his cue to leave them in peace. He turned and left, the door closing softly at his retreat.

"How are you boys getting on over there? Everything okay?"

"Yeah," Naruto answered. "Almost done."

"Anything I need to check over?"

"N-"

"Nah, most of this is just scraps and a few older wounds from last month," Naruto replied, intervening with Sasuke's predictably bitter answer.

"Good. You two get some sleep. Naruto, there's a pallet rolled up in one of the dresser drawers I think, if you want to stay." She checked her watch. "Then again, you _do_ still have night watch."

She could practically hear Naruto argue with himself. He sighed.

"I'll be back in an hour or so when my shift's up," the blonde said, turning to leave.

"Don't bother, dobe, I can sleep alone, you know," Sasuke answered haughtily. Naruto chuckled and grinned at his friend.

"Sure, whatever," he responded. "See ya later, Tsunade Baa-san." With that, he left the room.

A few minutes after Naruto had left, Tsunade heard covers shifting on the bed as Sasuke prepared for sleep.

"I'm glad your back, Sasuke. We've missed you," Tsunade said quietly. The rustling paused, but her words went unanswered. She hadn't expected anything less.

……………………..

A/N: alright! Much longer chapter this time. Of course, everything's kinda Angsty right now. That should pick up soon, possibly even next chapter. Any critiques of my work are appreciated.

Kitsuii is, from what I found out online, the name of Tsunade's summoned slug creature. At one point during her battle with Orochimaru, a smaller slug is formed from the larger one's body and goes to help the people on the ground, so I got this idea.

I don't know if Tsunade ever got over her fear of blood, but for my purposes, she has

According to timelines in the story, I'm assuming that Sasuke leaves at about age 13, thus, Sasuke and Naruto, assuming they were the same age at graduation even though its said that Naruto failed twice, which might make him two years older than Sasuke, they're both 17.


	3. The Morning After

Silver Feathers

By: Black Dragon Diva

_Rating: PG-13_

_Anime: Naruto_

_Spoilers: Up to Episode 144_

_Disclaimer: I don't own the Naruto Characters_

_Summary:_ Sasuke comes home after four years away from Kohona. He struggles to return to his former position on Kohona, but its clearly not as easy as it seems. To make things worse,he doesn't return alone and everyone's pointing fingers. There's something wrong with the young man he finds outside the borders of the hidden Sound village, and its not just because he can't remember who he is. Is he an Orochimaru spy, Sasuke as well, or is everything just a massive misunderstanding?

* * *

Chapter Three: The Morning After 

Dawn was there, on the other side of his eyelids. He could sense it. Of course he could, it was a ninja's job to be fully aware of one's environment at all times, so it was obvious he would know the time of day without the help of a clock or even looking at the horizon. But it was also true that he knew, even before his eyes were open, that something was… different. Not to say that was a bad thing. Actually, this was quite a _good_ type of different.

However, it _was_ dawn. Worse than that, he was _awake_. It could be passed off as force of habit. He had always been an early riser since childhood, and it only grew worse as he grew older and dark, haunting thoughts plagued both his sleep and his conscious. Getting up before dawn to visit the graves of fallen comrades could prove to be reason enough for this early rising. His students would never say he was an early riser, although they had their suspicions, no doubt, but complaining about his ability to become lost on the 'path of life' was much more amusing for them.

But, once more, it was dawn, and he was _still_ awake. He had been on night watch for his squad until the wee morning hours, and had just gone to bed no more than four hours before. Then again, shinobi were trained to run on less than twelve hours of sleep a week, should the need arise.

He opened both eyes, his right blinking against the wan light as the other stayed in the depths of darkness. Soft, dark cloth rested over said eye, rubbing gently over the rough scar that slashed over his Sharingan as he blinked.

Kakashi yawned in a lazy, carefree way. Dawn was, indeed, breaking over the far eastern horizon, pinks and purples blushing over leafy clouds.

"Something wrong Kakashi?"

The silver-haired jounin sat up, rubbing his uncovered, blue-gray eye as a child might. Genma, being watch, was the only one currently awake at that time of morning, having replaced Kakashi a few hours before.

The mission they had been sent on had been completed days before, but there was always a chance of a revenge-stricken ninja following them, so they kept up defenses as to not lead them to their village where things could get messy.

They were camped a few miles outside of Sand, enough distance between them and their allies that would provide them with cover and help should they become outnumbered and overpowered, but far enough away to be respectful of the other village's boundaries.

Kakashi, more from habit than for any other reason, looked around the small clearing they were camped in. He slicked a hand through his sleep-tussled hair.

"No," he replied quietly. He turned to Genma, the curl of his smiling eye expressing the truth of the statement. Genma mirrored it faintly as the Sharingan user turned back to the eastern sky.

"Today will be a nice day," he said thoughtfully. Genma nodded in agreement, glancing at the sky himself.

"We'll be home by dark, I think," Genma said. He began to restoke the smokeless fire to cook a small breakfast, as the rest of the camp would be awake soon.

"Hmm," Kakashi replied throatily. He stood, grabbing the lightweight, weatherproof sleeping back that was often standard for missions over two days long that did not allow them to use hotels, and shook it out soundlessly. It reminded him of why he had started to _request_ these missions, instead of taking what was handed to him.

Since Sasuke's departure nearly four years before, Kakshi had begun to request (more like demand) A- and S-class missions. His hope was, of course, to find Sasuke. As it turned out, it was his team that had been the first to find the subtle clues concerning Orochimaru's whereabouts, and Sasuke's as well. It was the information he had helped gather that had sent Kohona to war with Sound. The war that had begun with Orochimaru's cruel murder of Uchiha Itachi(1). Of course, after that, Kakashi had seen little. Jiraiya-sama and Tsunade-sama had been there to take care of Orochimaru, with Naruto trying to fight through Kabuto to get to a horror-struck Sasuke, who stood frozen in his personal agony. With the Mange Sharingan manifesting within him and dealing with the death of his elder brother, he was useless to Orochimaru, much to the fiend's fury.

Kakashi shook the thoughts away. Gods, that was about a month ago, but it struck him like a fresh knife every time. He had been forced into the back seat to fight the minions, and had no chance to retrieve his fallen student.

Thus, he still had work to do. It was his job to care for his students until they graduated from being his _students_ to being his _comrades_. Even then, abandoning them was unacceptable, if not more so. Saving Sasuke, the boy with whom he shared so much of the same fate, was his goal, and he was enslaved by the guilt. He had been unable to recover the young man when the opportunity had settled itself in his lap. His hands had been too busy with kunai and hand seals, making him unable to take advantage of the opportunity. It knawed at him without mercy.

However, thinking of it on this particular morning, it didn't encourage that knot in his stomach to twist painfully in anxiety and determination and fear.

Maybe it was just the promise of a beautiful day.

* * *

Naruto had been too excited, and too happy, to sleep when he had returned to the hospital from the remainder of his watch duty at midnight. Sasuke had been asleep, unfortunately. The blonde was hoping to squeeze and wheedle the details of the past three years of Sasuke's life from the Uchiha. Of course, he couldn't do that now. Hell, he probably wouldn't have been able to do it anyway with Baa-san there to hush them and demand they get some sleep. Then again, the other teen had probably gone to sleep for the main perk of not having to answer any questions right away. But Naruto wasn't rude. There was little doubt that even if Sasuke had been awake, he wouldn't have asked anything, as a show of his utter acceptance of Sasuke's return and respect for his privacy. But it didn't hurt to imagine annoying the Uchiha with questions! 

But either way, Sasuke was asleep when Naruto got back, warding away Naruto and his own deep exhaustion. So, to keep himself busy as his friend slept, Naruto helped the Hokage with Sasuke's 'guest'. She hadn't minded the help, and Naruto was grateful to have something to do.

By morning Naruto's stomach was muttering about his hunger, of which he had ignored all night. Normally, he would have stopped for something to eat before going home, plus breakfast early that morning. But he was reluctant to leave the hospital, in case something happened. And he was still worried. He was worried this all might be a dream. That he would wake up if he left Sasuke's room and have that guilty twist in his gut for weeks on end. It had happened before, and the memory of those times made him twitch in agitation.

Tsunade had heard his stomach growl. She had finished wrapping clean white cloth around the injured boy's upper arm and was searching the dresser for another set of clothing for the boy when she looked up, observing the drawn, serious face and intense gaze that settled on Sasuke. She had told him about an hour before that she would finish up alone, and he had uneasily settled in the hard chair in the corner of the room, moving it to face both Sasuke and the curtains behind which she worked. She sighed. She knew what it was like to worry about a comrade.

It took a few minutes, but she finally convinced Naruto to go downstairs to the hospital kitchen to pick up some food for himself. He protested at first, but when she ordered him, he did as she said, sulking slightly, but leaving.

Of course, he rushed in trying to get some food from the kitchen so he could return to the room faster. But that was impossible. From past experience in the hospital, he knew the food was awful, and picking out the least horrible proved _very_ difficult.

When Naruto returned to the room, he set the tray down on a small table by the window to use the bathroom. Upon passing, he noticed Baa-san(0) had finished dressing the boy on the bed through the half-open curtain. She was currently glancing at the bag by the bed as she pulled the covers over the lean body. She smoothed the wrinkles of the blanket and Naruto walked on. After flushing the toilet, Naruto happened to glance in the mirror as he washed his hands. It was no wonder why the women in the kitchen were giving him funny looks. His face was dirty and his clothes rumpled slightly from being worn for so long. His hair was drooping boredly. He washed his face, pulling his wet hands through his unruly hair. It had grown out a bit and lay flat and smooth at the back of his neck and he smiled at the thought that he could practically be forced into a small pony-tail. The top was less spiky and silkier, but still just as exuberant and determined to remain upright. As Naruto thrashed his hands through it a few times, pulling it backwards, it stood upright as it normally did, bright and alert. Pleased, he gave himself a grin and left.

He sat down at the table that held the tray, glancing over the overloaded tray with the chalky hospital food.

"Water."

Sasuke's gentle croak gave Naruto enough of a start to make him jump. He managed not to knock the table and looked up to the bed. Sunlight was starting to inch into the room, spilling over the blue blankets and Sasuke's pale face. Black eyes were half-lidded as the teen shifted and struggled to sit upright. Naruto quickly rushed to help him, sitting him up against the metal headboard. The other boy grunted, shrugging away the help as he leaned against a smashed pillow and the hard metal frame, looking pointedly at the tall, cool glass of water Naruto had brought up that sat on the tray.

Taking the hint, the shinobi went over and grabbed the glass and brought it to Sasuke. The Uchiha took it with a shaky arm, but a firm grip, and drained it quickly.

"Thanks," Sasuke said quietly, handing back the empty glass.

"Want anything else? I brought up breakfast." Naruto grinned at him warmly.

Sasuke nodded. He turned to his left to look at the thick, dark blue curtains. He jerked his chin towards them in question.

"How's the ton of bricks?" he asked sarcastically. Naruto smirked as he lifted the tray from the table. Same old Sasuke.

"He'll be okay, Baa-san said. He wont be awake until at least tomorrow, if not later." He sat down on the chair he had dragged over and set it between Sasuke's gaze and the curtains. "She told me we just have to wait and see what happens." He smiled at his friend as Sasuke looked at him. "But we'll figure that out later. For now-" He put the tray on Sasuke's lap. "-just get you're strength up. If you don't, you wont be able to pry Sakura-chan(2) off you when she finds out you're home."

Sasuke grunted irritably but nodded, turning his attention to the meal before him. His eyes strayed to the apple at the corner of the tray and he eyed it with shame and disgust. He picked it up and tossed it to Naruto, who caught it easily. He shook away the thoughts of all the apples Sakura had peeled for him and he had never eaten.

Naruto stowed it away to eat after Sasuke had fallen back asleep.

* * *

Shizune was worried. Of course she was worried! She had every right to be! Tsunade-sama wasn't at her home, wasn't at her desk, wasn't at the bar! She was running out of places to look and the Hokage had sent no word to Shizune concerning her whereabouts. 

So Shizune was looking at the last place she could think of, and cursing herself for not thinking of it at seven this morning, when she had _really_ needed the older woman's attention… er.. signature. After all, Tsunade-sama(3) _was_ a medical-nin. Of course the hospital would be an obvious place for her to be. Of course, Shizune had an explanation as to why she _shouldn't_ need to be at the hospital. One, there had been no battles, and the next group of ninja's due to arrive that day was Kakashi's, and that wasn't until much later that day. Although something could have gone wrong and they were back early.

Shizune walked faster, her feet kicking up small breath's of dust as she went. Two, she knew that if such a thing had happened Tsunade-sama would have called for her assistance. After all, she was the Hokage's leading disciple and an excellent doctor herself. Either way, she would have sent word.

The nurse at the front desk of the hospital didn't seem surprised, or even curious as to Shizune's visit, and the woman knew that she had found the right spot. To think, she had spent the early morning hours trying to find the woman and she was at the first place she should have looked! Sometimes the flippancy of her own mind amazed her.

"Can you tell me where Tsunade-sama is?" she asked.

The nurse smiled and nodded to her, already shuffling around her desk. She pulled out a large laminated paper that was emblazed with the hospital's blue prints. All the rooms were marred with three lines and three characters. Name, condition, doctor. Many were blank, but a few were filled in with carefully printed information in erasable green marker.

"We had a new patient last night that she's probably still with. His condition is listed as serious, so she isn't allowing visitors," the nurse explained. She held her finger to the room on the paper and smiled. "But I can give you the room number so you can speak with her." Shizune smiled and thanked her. She let her eyes stray to patient name on the map near where the attendant's finger rested. The space was blank.

209... 210... 211... 212... There it was, 213.

Shizune knocked politely on the door, listening to the eerie silence on the other side.

"Who is it? I said no visitors!"

The black-haired woman on the other side of the door sighed in relief. Good, Tsunade-sama was here.

"Its me, Tsunade-sama," she replied. "May I come in?"

There was a pause inside of the room, then a gentle fire of hushed whispers. An exasperated sigh, Shizune was sure it was from the Hokage, answered more heated whispers. Finally, a set of footsteps approached the door.

Shizune was very surprised when Naruto opened the door. It was past nine in the morning and he was usually out on missions by seven or eight.

"Naruto-kun(4). What are you doing here? Is everything alright?" she asked in surprise. But Naruto looked perfectly healthy, if a little hungry. There was a half-eaten apple in his left hand and he seemed to be sulking concerning the fact that it wasn't ramen.

"Hello, Shizune-san," he replied, offering a small smile. "C'mon in, Baa-san's just finishing up. And yeah, everything's going great."

He looked far too happy to be on a normal hospital visit, especially since he was in the 'Critical and Emergency' wing. The 'Recovery and Non-Emergency' wing that was used for mundane things like physicals and prescriptions and annoying pink-haired adolescent females, was downstairs.

"Good, you're here just in time to clean up this mess." Tsunade pulled a curtain aside, stepping from the make-shift private room they made. The window to her right caught her eye. Or rather, the sunlight that poured into it.

"Morning already? Well then, Naruto, help me move these curtain's and we'll see if this guy has problems with a little sunlight."

"Tsunade-sama! How long have you been here? Why didn't you send someone to tell me!" To say Shizune was flustered was an understatement. She was very close to pissed off.

"We had a few… guests visit us last night," Tsunade said evasively. She helped Naruto remove the curtains and set them against the wall between the two beds.

"Guests? Who?"

"Well, I only know half of them, the other half is a bit… distant at the moment." The Hokage gave her former lover's niece a mischievous smile. Naruto steadied the curtains against the wall to ensure they did not fall as Shizune shook her head. She turned to look at the person on the bed that the curtains had been obscuring. She gaped.

The boy on the bed was covered in bandages. Or, at least the parts of him she could see, taking into consideration the ugly grayish hospital pajamas and the warm blanket that rested over his sleeping form. His head was swathed in bandages, band-aids and gauze held in place with tape covering his cheeks. His throat was bandaged, as well as the juncture from his neck to his shoulder, which was visible courtesy of the skewed collar of the hospital gown. His hands, resting by his side above the blanket, were also wrapped.

Soiled linen and bloody clothing lay behind Shizune as she quickly turned to face the unconscious boy. Sunlight nestled on a finely chiseled face and dark, blackish hair. The skin was pale from blood loss, but looked firm and warm in the light. Even still, it was nicked and sickly.

"What happened to him?" Shizune squeaked. She stared at him a moment as Tsunade sighed, moving to stand next to her.

"We don't know yet. Its possible he was caught in the crossfire of the battle with Orochimaru, or got in the way of some fleeing Sound shinobi who took him for the enemy, or maybe just the result of a very fucked up, and probably failed, shinobi mission. We wont know until he wakes up." The Hokage was using a damp, white rag to clean her hands of some stubborn bits of blood. It still gave her a chill sometimes.

"What about his companions?" Shizune asked. She moved around the bed, putting her back to the window as she leaned over the injured man. She felt his forehead for fever and checked his pulse for irregular beat.

"He was escorted here by a ninja returning home. The shinobi didn't see what happened," Tsunade replied, straightening the metal cart that had held her supplies that she had used the night before. Its abuse could easily be measured by its obtuse disorganization and mess of soiled utensils. Hadn't she told Shizune to do this? Oh well.

Shizune turned to her teacher, raising an eyebrow. She straightened from her lean over the teen as she watched Tsunade.

"Who brought him here?" Her voice was not accusing, but merely curious. The Hokage made a vague gesture toward the window behind her deshi.

The woman turned around curiously, Naruto's name on her lips in question. Wasn't he supposed to have been on watch last night? The name died in her throat at the sight of yet another black-haired young man in the room, on the other bed.

"Sasuke-kun," she breathed. She scrambled to turn around, hurrying to the other boy's side, checking temperature and pulse and looking over the few scraps and scratches on his sleeping face. She glanced up at Naruto, who stood with a proud, 'I-told-you-he'd-come-back' lift to his chin and smile on his lips. He thrust his hands into the pockets of his black pants and grinned. Shizune just smiled in a 'I-don't-believe-it-but-you-did-it!' way.

* * *

Sakura took a break at noon for lunch. She had worked from eight that morning until her break without pause. The worst part was that she hadn't even seen Tsunade-sama and couldn't ask about the justu she had found troublesome the night before. Apparently, an unknown man had shown up outside of the village in a very serious state and she had been with him since late the night before, tending his wounds. By mid-morning the Hokage had returned to her home, probably to catch up on lost sleep, but Sakura wasn't rude enough to bother her at home. 

The young woman sighed as she walked down the main street of Kohona village to return to her home for lunch. She passed Ichiraku, Naruto's favorite ramen house. She was surprised at the disappointment she suddenly felt at not seeing Naruto sitting on one of the stools, slurping ramen. She walked on, her pace falling slack.

What did she do to make this? To make her life this way? She had no friends, no boyfriend, no annoying stalker. The boy she had once crushed on so fiercely and struggled to valiantly to befriend was gone, and no one even knew where he had gone after the death of Itachi and the defeat of Orochimaru. Her stalker, the one who crushed on her as badly as she had crushed on Sasuke, who had become a great friend, if a little annoying, barely even stuck around the village long enough to exchange greetings with her, much less any semblance of conversation. He was either on missions or training _all the time_. She couldn't even ask him about any possible leads on Sasuke's whereabouts. And perhaps that's why he avoided her. Perhaps hurt that she still liked Sasuke more than him, childish though it was, or ashamed that he had yet to fulfill his promise of bringing him back to her.

Kakashi-sensei(5) was different. He visited her time to time, but briefly, with long stretches of loneliness in between. After all, he did have missions to complete and everything. Plus, she knew he had been trying so hard to find Sasuke. He _had_ been the one to find Sasuke and Orochimaru's hiding place three months before. One month afterward, war had broken loose between Kohona, allies by its side, and Sound, consisting mostly of passing missing-nin who needed a place to stay. Being a new village, and probably because Orochimaru didn't care as long as they might possibly protect the village for their own sake, missing-nin had taken to Sound as a type of base, where they could do what they pleased.

Sakura had been to the village specifically as a medic-nin and had seen the carnage wrought by the outlaws and Orochimaru's own shinobi. Many had died.

Sakura stopped in the street, balling a fist to keep its trembling at bay.

Was Sasuke in one of the simple graves dug for the dead of the enemy? The graves with no names; forgotten casualties of war. Or had he been caught in one of the vicious fires that devoured Sound, left with no body to place in a grave, unmarked or not. Or had he been so mutilated that no one had recognized him and left him to rot in a secluded knack in the forest?

Sakura forced her feet forward and started to walk, albeit, shakily, but walking, toward her home. The past month had brought these thoughts into manifestation, and as time passed they only grew more vivid. She didn't know what she had done to cause all of this, but she still had hope, although its light was flickering sickly, it was there.

* * *

...

* * *

A/N: For the most part, I'm going by the manga up to the first six books (cuz that's all that's out). In the second book Kakashi shows his students a map of… well, all the hidden villages and the land they protect. If you notice, Sand is next to Kohona, with a few small countries with no Hidden Ninja villages between them. So if you say Kohona Village is in the middle of their territory, and Kakashi's group is in one of those countries with no hidden village, I would say it would take half a day or so to get there after covering their tracks and everything. 

(0)Baa-san: equivalent to 'old hag' or 'granny'. when Naruto found out Tsunade was really an old lady using Chakra to appear young, he refused to call her anything but Baa-san.

(1) remember, in Japan, the family name comes before the given name.

(2)-chan: an honorific normally given to girls, pets, etc., as a sign of cuteness. Naruto's always called Sakura -chan because he liked her so much, it was a compliment. Calling a Japanese stranger -chan _can_ be considered insulting, as I've known it. Granted, I'm not Japanese, so I'm no expert. u

(3)-sama: the equivalent to 'lord' or 'lady'. someone of importance.

(4)-kun: Tsunade calls Neji with this too in my little Naruto-world. I put it there as a sign that she's trying to be nice. It's mostly used on males, mostly younger boys, as a sign of familiarity. I'm pretty sure Shizune regularly calls Naruto with the -kun.

(5)-sensei: meaning teacher, professor, etc. meant to be used on anyone you want to brown-nose, mostly teachers and doctors and the like :P

----In the first chapter Sasuke calls Naruto 'dobe' which is a 'nickname' he gave him when they graduated. It means 'dead last' (anime translation) or 'dunce' (manga translation). Naruto, in response, calls him Sasuke-teme, or Sasuke-bastard. :P cute boys.

Thank you wonderful reviewers!


	4. Freakishness

Silver Feathers

By: Black Dragon Diva

Rating: PG-13

Anime: Naruto

Spoilers: Up to Episode 144

Disclaimer: I don't own the Naruto Characters

Summary: Sasuke comes home after four years away from Kohona. But he's not alone. There's something wrong with the young man he finds outside the borders of the hidden Sound village, and its not just because he can't remember who he is. Is he an Orochimaru spy or something far worse?

* * *

Chapter Four: Freakishness

Neji had never been an egotistical fool, but as he walked down Kohona's main street, he was proud of himself. On the inside only, of course, showing it in an outward gesture was unheard of for Neji. So he now walked with barely more rod in his straight back and tilt to his chin. He was frightfully tall walking in such a way. Already he was nearing six foot, tall as a poll and as muscular as a lean cat used to preying on creatures many times its size. Because of his height, he had taken to wearing longer pants instead of the shorts he had used to wear. It would save him the embarrassment of cat-calls from females who eyed his muscular legs with blushes and coy smiles. The thought alone made his chin twitch downward in shame. Girls could be scary.

But, away from his fine, shapely legs and back to why he was walking like he owned the world. Wasn't that usually reserved for Naruto? Or even Sasuke! Now those two could pass off as egotistical and the fool anytime. He smirked at the thought.

Once more, away from other thoughts. He was proud because he wasn't just walking anywhere. His presence had been requested by the Hokage herself! Or, rather, his Byakugan. Of course, she could have called for his uncle, whose Byakugan was (supposedly) superior to his own. So the logical conclusion was that she called for him because it was something concerning a matter he knew about that needed to be kept secret. Like, let's say, Sasuke's return to the village? Or maybe that freakish Chakra-Berserker guy.

Now, _that_ guy was a freak. What would drive such a focused buy like Sasuke into picking up a war-torn nut like that beat-up Chakra-wuss? Granted, it wasn't Neji's place to judge, but the stranger was _weird_. That was by the standards of a shinobi, most of which were very eccentric themselves. Even if you compared him to 'normal' people, he still didn't fit. It wasn't that Neji didn't know a lot about people who weren't ninjas, he just didn't really care that much. He really didn't know a hell of a lot about the non-ninja half of humanity, but he did know that he would have noticed if they were that… freakish.

Upon reaching that thought, he also reached Tsunade-sama's office door. He couldn't remember climbing the steps to the top of the tower at all. Oh well. It was nearly three in the afternoon, but it was odd that there was essentially no staff on call. Normally he would be asked his business before he even got to the stairway, even though he and his clan were well-known and powerful. Still, you couldn't be too careful, he supposed. But, he reasoned, she was probably too exhausted from the night before to deal with anything that wasn't urgent, and had sent them home for her own peace of mind.

Which brought Neji back to where he was. Why had he been called here?

He knocked on the Hokage's door and stood patiently before his knock was answered with a grunted verbal acknowledgement. Taking it as a gesture to enter, he pushed aside the doors and stepped into the room.

Upon seeing the office, any shinobi with half a brain would know something important was up. The entire room was trashed, the bookshelves only half full, their charges on the floor or on a straining desk littered with scrolls and documents. The room hadn't been half this messy when the Hokage was studying techniques to help with Rock Lee's operation, or even when about to pit war with Sound!

Tsunade looked up, pausing as she was struggling to unbury a book from under a stack of scrolls. She seemed surprised to see him at first, until she looked at the clock on the wall, since the one on her desk had been knocked to the floor, replaced with an open map of the continent and Hidden Village territories.

"Neji-kun, come in," the Hokage said, gesturing him forward as she continued the never-ending search for that elusive book under the mountain of scrolls.

Neji stepped forward, closing the door behind him softly. Tsunade-sama seemed distracted for a moment before she looked up with a sigh. Hard, tired amber eyes studied him closely as the Hyuuga stood quietly, trying not to stare back disrespectfully. She grunted in the most unlady-like fashion and turned to open a drawer of her desk. There was a flash of blue fabric, then a gentle wave of silvery black.

Neji's eyes darted curiously to the object in her eyes, then back to her face.

"A feather, Hokage-sama?" he asked with brilliant collectiveness. It was an odd thing, why would she request him to look at a feather? He didn't know much about birds. She'd have more luck with Shikamaru. Wasn't he the one who stared at the sky all day? Surely he would know a bit about birds. Strangely enough, he felt compelled to touch it, to horde it away like a dragon with precious treasure. A chill struck the back of his head and he shook the stupid thought away. Hyuuga Neji, hording! What a laugh. That was more Naruto's thing. The guy kept _everything_, and managed to keep it (for the most part) neat and in a semblance of order. The kid's room was like a museum of mementos.

What was with all these distractions? He was really out of it today.

"Yes, I found this in the bag of the young man Sasuke brought back with him," she explained. "I want you to look at it with the Byakugan."

Neji was curious. It usually wasn't his thing to be that way, but this didn't seem to be a usual day either. The feather itself was something to look at. Golden sunlight filtered through the windows behind the Fifth, tickling silver smiles from the inky-black body.

Neji nodded, concentrating Chakra on his eyes to activate the Byakugan. What he saw was startling, to say the least.

"Neji?" The teen's amazed face was unnerving. This was a _Hyuuga_, who kept silly emotions like amazement to themselves, if they ever felt it at all. Of course, Hinata was an odd exception.

Neji shook his head slightly and deactivated the Byakugan. He turned back to her face, then the feather in her hand again. It sure _looked_ normal. It was black, and that wasn't unusual for a bird. Of course, the highlights of silver that winked out when the right light touched it didn't seem very ordinary, but he wasn't an expert on bird coloration, or birds in general, as stated before. Judging by the length of it, it was a wing feather, and a large one. No matter how big, no sparrow-like bird would be gifted with such a feather. It belonged to a raptor, if such a large creature existed.

"Neji!" Tsunade-sama's irritated voice was harsh on his numbed ears, tinted with curious worry. He snapped his attention back to her and gave a brief bow of apology.

"I'm sorry, Tsunade-sama. Its just… interesting…" Damn, what the hell was with all this crap today? Was the weirdness stalking him!

He straightened. "I didn't think it was possible, but I suppose it is." He studied it again. "Birds.. _normal_ birds, have not been known to store Chakra in their feathers."

He looked back at the Hokage, who's face hardened and glazed over in serious, deep thought.

"Is it live Chakra?" she asked.

"Yes, it flows as it does within a living body," he replied. All ninja knew this was not normal. Chakra could be stored in objects, or even living beings; Naruto was living proof of that. But if Chakra was stored in an inanimate object it 'died', or stopped flowing as it did in a living body, until it was expelled by force. It would always be 'dead' after encased in an object, as it would be unable to grown and replenish, or 'live'. But neither did the Chakra diminish. It could be used years later. Exploding tags were a useful example.

But this was different. It was unheard of to have living Chakra inside of a dead object. It shouldn't have been able to survive without living, regenerating cells. The only logical explanation was that it was extremely fresh. That was a bit absurd, and unless Tsunade kept live birds in her desk drawer, it was impossible.

Neji studied it with his Byakugan once more. There was a problem with this recent theory. The feather was_ still_ alive. It should have died by this time. The other explanation was a mythical one. Neji racked his brain. Wasn't there a legend about these kind of things? But Neji never had been one for fairy-tales, no matter how Fate-induced they were. They were just stories. What were fairy-tales? Nothing of truth, certainly.

Shizune paused a few paces from the Hokage's study. Neji walked past her, his cold, impassive face the same as it always was. But there was something frightening in his eyes. A dark thoughtfulness that further straightened the mature edges to his face.

She turned to watch the distracted teenager leave, uncertain if she really wanted to enter the room he had just exited. She took a deep breath, turning back to her destination and opening the door to the office.

She was appalled by the 'organized mess' on the desk and beside it. It was an _organized_ mess because of course Tsunade-sama knew where everything was, but it was otherwise disorganized; an unsightly mess that looked better suited to be in a sloppy adolescent's room.

"Tsunade-sama, what _is_ this?"

The older woman looked up from her desk, blinking at her bewildered student. She glanced about her desk in question, then returned to her work.

"Research," she said simply. Shizune was about to demand what when the Hokage continued.

"I'm looking for a clan… I think… or a village. Or anything." There was a hard, frustrated edge to her voice. "I found a clan and village symbol(1) but I can't identify them at all!" There was an annoyed shuffling of books and documents as the black-haired young woman watched.

Tsunade gruffly grabbed a rumpled pile of blue fabric and threw it at her, confident it would be caught.

Shizune held up the cloth that had been tossed to her for observation. From the front it seemed ordinary enough with the high, wide collar that was the current style, two pockets at the side for cold hands. It was long-sleeved, but they had been rolled up at one point, judging by the scrunch marks at the cuffs. The trim was white, but not drastically so, along the zipper than ran up the front and on the cuffs and seemed fit for the ordinary shirt.

Turning to look at the sleeve, where the village crest normally was, something seemed odd. Of course, not all younger ninja's, and for the most part no civilians, wore a village crest on their shoulder unless traveling to an allied village, but it was more than that. She had never seen the crest before.

Shizune studied it closely. Two 'heaven' swirls(2) chased each other, red as blood. She passed it off as perhaps a personal preference and turned to the back of the shirt. The clan symbol was normally emblazed on the back as a show of ninja pride. What was on the back of the shirt was odd. A giant bird, wove of silver threads, held its outspread wings across the back, arching upward. Although a simple pattern as was common, it was amazingly odd.

"A bird as the clan symbol would explain the feathers I found in his bag." Tsunade gestured to a bag near her desk and Shizune remembered seeing it beside the bed of the injured boy Sasuke had brought back with him. "If his clan worked with summoned birds. But I've been looking all morning and there is no village of heavens. The village symbol doesn't have anything to do with the clan symbol, or else I'd say it's just a small version of the clan symbol. But there's nothing here on a Village of Heaven."

"Then where did he come from?"

The Hokage lifted a brow, looking up at a confused Shizune.

"That's what I would like to know," she said quietly.

* * *

Kakashi's group was glad to be home. After two weeks away, I wasn't hard to be relieved at the immediate thought of coming home to see loved ones.

Kakashi dismissed his group, encouraging them to return home to see their families while he went on to report to the Hokage himself, waving away their half-hearted protests. They needed more time to spend with their families than he did, especially since he didn't exactly have one to spend time with in the first place. However, his first goal upon completing his report was to visit the stone of the fallen to trace the weathered names of his old comrades, and pray to those new names inscribed there from the war with Sound.

But other than that, Kakashi didn't have anything else on his mind but food, sleeping, and visiting Sakura and Naruto in the morning. He wasn't exactly their teacher anymore since the Sannin had taken over their training, but he still made it a point to stop in on them to check on their progress. But in comparison to his teammates, Kakashi had nothing to do.

Thus, Kakashi split up with his group to head toward the Hokage's tower to file his report.

The Copy Nin reached the building a few minutes before the sun set fully to the right of the giant stone faces of the past Hokages. He was surprised and a bit curious at the… emptiness of it. Granted, they were not at war, but war clean-up was bigger than the war itself. That in itself would have encouraged many people to be at the office, helping the Hokage with sticky affairs, even this late in the evening.

When he stepped into the building, he knew something was different. It didn't feel like a bad thing, per say, but it clearly said that something was up, whether it was a bad or a good thing, he couldn't tell.

Finding no one on the ground floor to greet him, Kakashi took to the stairs of the tower, toward the office Tsunade-sama used the most often. He trod about lazily, blandly looking about as he stuffed his hands into his pocket and hunched over nonchalantly. Belying his outward appearance, he searched hard for any sign of foul play within the building, including traps and illusions.

When he had come within feet of the Hokage's office, he had to jump out of the way to avoid bumping into the Fifth herself as she exited the room. Not wanting to be rude, he bowed and apologized to her.

"Kakashi-san, good, I was hoping you'd be back," Tsunade said, waving away the apology. "Naruto brought in a few guests you might want to meet."

The jounin's visible eyebrow shot upward, hiding from view under his hitai-ate(3). Kakashi was never truly socially apt toward anyone that wasn't part of his small shinobi 'family', everyone, including the Hokage, knew that. Curious, his head tilted, a rumble of question in his throat.

The Fifth walked by him, ignoring his curious gestures, trusting him to follow. Of course he did, but not before fully recognizing the look on her face that had been bothering him since he had glanced on her. Her face was tired and worn, heavy from exhaustion, with a few more wrinkles than were usual for her Chakra-induced youthfulness. It was suspicious, to say the least, especially when coupled with the empty tower.

"If I may, Hokage-sama, why is this place so quiet?" Kakashi asked. The two walked out onto the street, the ninja following his leader closely in his usual, casual slouch.

"I was into a project and didn't need distractions," Tsunade said off-handedly. It would be rude to ask about the project, and he didn't think she'd tell him anyway, since it was none of his business, so Kakashi stayed silent. So much for conversation, he thought and resigned himself to the gaudy silence of the evening streets in Kohona, that weren't that silent at all. Instead, he began to wonder why she hadn't asked for his mission report yet. Granted, she wouldn't ask in public, but she wouldn't have waited this long any other time, which told him that a lot was on her mind. The mission had been top-secret and the success of it desperately needed to ensure further peace, but she seemed to have forgotten. That put him on edge. Normally, you couldn't get the woman that distracted, no matter what, even when drunk out of her mind. She wasn't the type to let her focus waver.

Whatever was going on, it was big.

When they stepped into the hospital, he was both surprised and not so much so. Being Naruto, he had probably been putzing around and gotten his little friends to spar with him, then essentially gotten his ass handed to him. Well, the starting a fight part wasn't so surprising (although he had seriously thought the kid had become more mature than that. What a bother.), but it he hadn't had a _true_ beating in many years. In fact, if you didn't count the part he played in the war, if only because it wasn't a spar gone nuts, but war, then he hadn't gotten his ass handed to him in almost four years. And then it was serious… it was by Sasuke.

The Copy-Nin pushed the Uchiha from his mind as he and the Hokage walked through the cool hospital. Sunlight no longer streamed into the windows and so the overhead lights burned brightly against the shiny floor. Tsunade seemed to walk faster after they ascended the stairs to the next level. Kakashi thought little of it.

When they stopped outside a room, he vaguely filed away the room number as Tsunade turned to face him. Her eyes were sharp as she looked him over, as though sizing him up to be sure he could handle the mission at hand. He was faintly amused as he looked back at her innocently until she turned away, seeming to be satisfied with the sudden evaluation.

The door to room 213 opened.

……………………

(1)-look on Naruto's sleeve, Sasuke's back, Sakura's back, Hinata's shoulder, etc. clan symbols.

(2)-like on Sasuke's seal

(3)-forehead protector

A/N: wee! Alright! Its been a month -hangs self- and I'm sorry it took so long! I'm actually like four chapters ahead, so its not the case of not writing, it's a case of not typing and posting! -bangs head on desk- please forgive me! Also forgive me again, this chapter was uncertain as to its ending place, so it's a LOT shorter than I had intended it! Sorry!

Rant on the Dub: Good, but not great

Now its been three weeks since the Naruto dub started in America. Personally, I think only Kakashi and Sasuke's voice actors fit their characters, but still its going to be great to see it in English! Don't worry Dubbers, you can never match up to the real thing, but we still love you!

Thank you all for reading! I feel the love!

J+


End file.
